Wu-Tang told us that cash rules everything. Yet, this is becoming more evident as it's likely that vaccinating bank employees for the coronavirus will take priority over high-risk communities.
Per MarketWatch, the American Bankers Association—which represents community banks—asked the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention if it could "designate a narrow slice of the financial services" for the banking industry's essential workers. This means that tellers and other consumer-facing bank workers could receive preferable treatment by getting the COVID-19vaccine ahead of most Americans—including high-risk citizens like those 65 or older and people with pre-existing medical conditions.
ABA says that it is specifically asking that bank workers in rural areas be pushed to the front of the line.
"From the start of the pandemic ABA members have prioritized the health and safety of their customers and employees. In our conversations with public health agencies, ABA has advocated that among bank employees already deemed ‘essential’ by the government, those that come in contact with the public every day, such as tellers, should be considered for the CDC’s Phase 1b along with essential workers in other industries," ABA explains. "The CDC has already designated health-care workers and residents of long-term-care facilities for Phase 1a."
The FDA and CDC have been working together to fast-track a vaccine in hopes to curb the pandemic. Yet despite their efforts, mass-produced relief from the coronavirus still seems to be months away for most Americans. This comes as cases continue to spike again with the CDC predicting that there could be more than 19,000 additional deaths before December is over.
